Hey Changemaker!

Nisha Anand: Building Bridges for Social Justice Movements

Nisha Anand is the CEO of Dream.org, a nonprofit organization that brings people together across racial, social and partisan lines to solve some of the toughest problems in the US and beyond. She is also the Political Director of Rebuild The Dream, an organization fighting for an economy that works for everyone. In essence, Nisha works at the intersection of criminal justice reform, green economics, and tech equity to create a better future for all.
For over twenty years Nisha Anand has been a social justice activist and leader. She has seen movements and organizations rise and fall. She uses what she has learned to support leaders, organisers and changemakers.
In this episode, we dive deep into the ways we can have meaningful conversations and social justice movements in a highly polarised world. Nisha shares personal stories of what has shaped her as an activist and into becoming a  bridge-builder. She speaks about her work with Dream.org.
Nisha says that "The humanity that connects us must be stronger than what has been created to divide us".
Learn more about Nisha and her work
nishaanand.org
Ted Talk: go.ted.com/nishaanand
dream.org
Justice Innovation Prize: https://www.justiceinnovationprize.org/
 

Kim Smouter: Anti-Racism, Big Tech and Europe’s response to Israel-Palestine

Kim Smouter, the Executive Director of the European Network Against Racism (ENAR). Kim is a policy and advocacy expert with nearly 20 years experience advocating social causes including LGBTQIA+ rights, employment, education and social affairs, civic space and dialogue, and digital rights.
Previously, Kim has held senior and leadership roles in the European Parliament, the European Network of National Civil Society Associations, and ESOMAR, the global trade association for opinion polling businesses. He holds a master’s degree in European Public Affairs and a bachelor’s degree in European Studies and is a graduate of the University of Maastricht.
In this conversation, Kim shares a story of what brought him to working with social change and justice. We talk about the challenges in Europe as Islamaphobia, anti-semitism, anti-immigrant sentiments and hate speech are on the rise. Kim shares how the European Network Against Racism works and how they work to combat discrimination and racism.
This conversation was recorded at WebSummit, a tech conference gathering more than 70,000 people in Lisbon, Portugal to meet and discuss the future of tech. From AI to startup pitches, talks on climate and democracy, and networking sessions and masterclasses, the conference has an important role in shaping how the industry prioritises human rights, equality and democracy.
I ask Kim about the role of tech in championing human rights and what he sees as the main barriers when big tech seems to be doing the exact opposite.
In light of the Israel-Palestine conflict, Kim addresses the calls to action that ENAR published for European leaders. We talk about the intersection between political conflicts, technology and the discrimination we see.
Learn more about the European Network Against Racism at enar-eu.org.
Find all episodes of the Hey Changemaker! Podcast and nominate a guest at girlsglobe.org/changemaker.

Spogmay Ahmed: Feminist Foreign Policy

In this episode of the Hey Changemaker podcast, you’ll hear a conversation from the Girls’ Globe Solidarity Studio. Girls’ Globe’s Advisor Felogene Anumo speaks with Spogmay Ahmed in a conversation centered around feminist foreign policy.
Spogmay Ahmed is the Senior Policy Advisor for the Feminist Foreign Policy Collaborative.
In this capacity, she helps manage the Global Partner Network for Feminist Foreign Policy and the Coalition for a Feminist Foreign Policy in the United States, and provides overall policy and advocacy expertise for civil society, governments, and multilateral organizations.
Prior to joining the Collaborative, Spogmay served as Senior Global Policy Advocate at the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), handling ICRW's portfolio on feminist foreign policy globally and in the United States. She has provided policy analysis and advocacy leadership in multilateral spaces, including the United Nations, G7, and G20.
Through her years of experience, Spogmay has gained a multifaceted understanding of the multilateral system - previously working with the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific in Bangkok, Thailand and the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the UN in New York. Spogmay holds a Master in Public Affairs from Princeton University and a BA in International Affairs from the George Washington University.
In this episode, Spogmay clarifies what Feminist Foreign policy is, and shares her own story of how she got involved in this work and what inspires her to work for gender equality and racial and social justice. She speaks about what gives her hope, despite the many crises that the world is facing right now.
We hope that this conversation can inspire you to look at your own government’s engagement in foreign policy. That it can help you see foreign policy in a new light - and help you see new ways to engage in global and international issues.
We’re so grateful for Spogmay’s generous participation in the Girls’ Globe Solidarity Studio, and for our wonderful feminist activist Felogene Anumo for leading this conversation.   

Dr. Taveeshi Gupta: Boys, Men, Fathers and Gender Equality

Dr. Taveeshi Gupta is the Director of Research, Evaluation and Learning at Equimundo. Her expertise lies in understanding the role of gender norms in perpetuating violence against women and children, creating inequitable home and workplace environments, and reinforcing inter-generational transmission of harmful gender identities for boys and girls.
In this conversation, Dr. Taveeshi Gupta speaks with Julia Wiklander about the new State of the World's Fathers report and about the status of men and gender equality. They speak about the impact of the digital world on boys, their ideas of gender equality and why we must involve boys in the gender equality work. Taveeshi shares personal stories of what brought her to work with men, boys and masculinities in the first place. She shares what brings her hope and how she stays motivated to continue this important work. 
Taveeshi has been trained in rigorous mixed methodological research and is widely published. She is part of the Lancet Commission's Scientific Advisory Committee on Child Maltreatment and Violence Prevention and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Embracing Carers group. Before joining Equimundo, she worked as an independent consultant with Overseas Development Institute, UNICEF ROSA, Plan International, and Harvard’s Kennedy School. She has a BA and MA in Psychology from University of Delhi, and a PhD in Developmental Psychology from New York University.
Learn more from the research:
State of the World’s Fathers 2023 report 
International Men & Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES) (2022)
Global Boyhood Initiative: The State of UK Boys (2022)

Dr. Brenda Oulo - What does it mean to have agency?

Dr. Brenda Oulo is a feminist researcher specialising in multidisciplinary topics related to the well-being of adolescent girls. As the co-director of the Girls Agency Lab (GAL), Dr. Brenda leads an initiative that spans across Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, and Rwanda. In addition, she's currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Public Health Economics and Decision Science in the esteemed Wellcome Trust program at the School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR), University of Sheffield.
Agency, as Dr. Brenda knows all too well, is a vital construct that empowers girls to effect change in their own lives and communities. It's a key outcome of empowerment and life skills programs, yet finding a standard measure has proven to be a challenge.
But what is agency?
In this episode, we'll delve into Dr. Brenda groundbreaking work, exploring the importance of agency, its impact on girls' lives, and the quest to develop a meaningful and validated measurement. We speak about our own lives and Dr. Brenda shares personal stories of her own journey of empowerment and her relationship with agency.
This conversation really is a journey into the heart of change - where it all really begins. Dr. Brenda Oulo helps us to begin to uncover the pathways to enhancing the agency of adolescent girls, and the agency in our own lives.

Heartbreak, Compassion and Determined Action

In this episode, Julia Wiklander speaks about the horrors happening in Palestine and Israel and in other parts of the world. She shares how she believes we must let it break our hearts, to allow for compassion and determined action. 
This episode includes audio from Sim Kern and Filippo Grande. The audio is taken from Instagram, and you can follow them @refugees and @sim_bookstagrams_badly.
Julia Wiklander is the Founder and President of Girls' Globe and the host of the Hey Changemaker! Podcast. She is a social entrepreneur, human rights advocate, writer and strategic communicator. Julia hosts an online course in Digital Storytelling for Impact and workshops on the intersection of feminist storytelling, digital media and strategic communications. 

Japnit Ahuja: Teaching Tech to Underprivileged Girls in India

Japnit Ahuja is a dynamic force of change and the founder of Go Girl. As a machine learning enthusiast, social entrepreneur and dedicated educator, Japnit's journey is incredibly inspiring.
At the age of sixteen, Japnit was selected by the Singapore Government for a fully-funded scholarship, leading her to complete her high school education in Singapore. This experience exposed her to new cultures and instilled in her the qualities of resourcefulness and independence.
Japnit's fascination with coding and machine learning led her to publish a research paper and earn national-level academic honors. Her pursuit of knowledge and excellence took her to Ontario Tech University, Canada, where she's currently a third-year undergraduate.
Japnit is not only passionate about technology but also deeply committed to women's empowerment through education. At the age of 16, she founded Go Girl Code, a nonprofit organization. Go Girl Code's mission is to provide free coding workshops for underprivileged children in India, with a strong emphasis on closing the gender gap in the technology industry. The organization has made technology accessible to over 2,000 girls from remote and rural areas in India, teaching in native Indian languages.
Japnit's future path is a perfect fusion of her two passions: technology and women's empowerment. Her aim is to excel in her field and serve as an inspiration to the next generation of female computer scientists, breaking barriers and making a significant impact in the world of IT. Her recent accolades include winning women in technology scholarships from Adobe, Cadence, and Zonta in 2022. Japnit Ahuja's relentless commitment to education and gender equality is creating a brighter future for underprivileged students and empowering young women in technology.
Learn more:
https://www.japnitahuja.com/
https://www.gogirlorganisation.com/
Listen to more episodes, nominate a changemaker or leave a voice message here: girlsglobe.org/changemaker
 
 

Jinsella: Believing Peace is Possible

Jinsella is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Demilitarise Education (dED). Over the past 5 years she has led on the development of a comprehensive model for carrying out university demilitarisation. This includes a treaty and the world’s first Universities and Arms Database which has so far uncovered over £1bn worth of UK universities partnerships with the military and defence sector. The database is an essential transparency tool designed so students can use evidence-based data to hold their universities accountable for their complicity in war.
Deeply exploring the global fight for peace, Jinsella is a talk show host for dED Talks, which has now welcomed over 100 modern day peacemakers including, Stella Assange, La Roux and Frank Barat and has been watched by over 17K people across social media.
Demilitarise Education works to break the ties between UK universities and the military and defence sector. dED has been training students how to research their universities involvement and upload it to dEDs universities and arms database which has so far uncovered over £1.3BN worth of partnerships.
Learn More
To learn more about Jinsella's work and Demilitarise Education, visit their website at ded1.co. Explore the dED Talks series on Instagram for inspiring conversations with peacemakers at @ded_ucation. Dive into the research and findings on the impact of militarized education through ICAN's research reports.
Subscribe and Engage
Stay connected with Jinsella's work and the Hey Changemaker! Podcast by visiting girlsglobe.org/changemaker. Subscribe, rate, and share the podcast and be a part of building this global community of changemakers.

Dr. Areeg Abdalmagid Abass: An Urgent Perspective on Sudan

Dr. Areeg Abdalmagid Abass is a Sudanese doctor and public health professional, with over 5 years of experience tackling inequity in Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). Areeg worked with the Federal Ministry of Health as a SRHR Emergency Preparedness and Response Officer focusing to anticipate vulnerability and undertake measures to more effectively mitigate, prepare for, respond to and recover from SRH emergencies in conflict areas and reproductive health needs amidst emergencies with the sole purpose of strengthening the fragile health system of the country. 
 
During the past years, Areeg has led more than 5 national campaigns to raise awareness and advocate against gender based violence, child marriage and female genital mutilation to promote SRHR of women and young children in under-served communities. In 2020, she was named one of the 16 most influential women tackling SRHR in Sudan. She is also an alumnus of the Nobel Women Laureates program in Canada as well as being a Mandela Washington Fellowship Alumnus in 2022.
 
Areeg embarked on a journey of 6 days to reach Rwanda to be able to attend WD2023, because of the suspension of flights from Sudan and the complete closure of airports at that time. In this podcast Areeg shares her insights and the turmoil of experiences she went through while she fled the war in Khartoum.

Julia Wiklander: A message of self care and an update on Hey Changemaker

The Hey Changemaker! Podcast is alive and well. We have a lot of interviews that have been conducted and many more scheduled in the coming weeks and months. However, those that are in the works will be published after the summer here in Sweden - coming back in September. 
In the meantime, we will be sharing many stories from changemakers around the world via the Girls’ Globe platform. So, please subscribe at girlsglobe.org/emails to hear more from them and to follow along the many exciting things we are doing in the next few months.
If you haven’t listened to all of our existing 20+ episodes, go back and do so! I have been inspired by every single conversation. 
All in all, I sincerely hope that this message can be a reminder for yourself to evaluate your own work and life - to dare to reprioritise and to dare to fail at living up to your own or others expectations. As we do this work, we need to be kind to ourselves and connect to our inner loving voice time and time again. 
One thing that I have appreciated so much in the past year are the Women’s Circles hosted by Sharon D’Agostino. You can hear more about them in my conversation with her in episode 15. You can learn more and register for an upcoming one at girlsglobe.org/womenscircle.